Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies (Recipe & Video)
These are the best soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies! They are slightly crispy on the edges and soft and chewy on the inside. This recipe is my all-time favorite cookie recipe, and once you try this recipe, it will also be your favorite recipe.
This soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe was first published in December 2020 and updated in October 2024. Since this video recipe was published on my YouTube channel, it has become a viral sensation, gaining over 7.5 million views and earning its place as one of the most popular chocolate chip cookie recipes around the world. Tens of thousands of people have already tried and loved these cookies (you can check the glowing comments on my video!). This recipe has quickly become a go-to in households worldwide, standing proudly alongside my famous 3-ingredient butter cookies and irresistible chocolate crinkle cookies, both of which you absolutely must try when you get the chance!
Video Recipe 📹
Watch the full video recipe to learn how to make the best chocolate chip cookies. This step-by-step tutorial simplifies the process, offering tips and tricks to guarantee perfect results every time.
Prefer the written recipe? Scroll down to the recipe box for the full written recipe! 👇
Ingredients for Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Brown sugar: Adds moisture and creates a chewy texture, while also providing a rich, caramel-like flavor to the cookies.
- White sugar: Contributes to the crisp edges and helps the cookies spread while baking.
- Unsalted butter: Adds richness and flavor, while also creating a tender texture.
- Egg: Binds the ingredients together and adds moisture, helping to create a soft and chewy consistency.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances the overall flavor and adds a warm, sweet aroma.
- All-purpose flour: Provides structure to the cookies and balances the wet ingredients.
- Baking soda: Helps the cookies rise and spread, creating a light texture.
- Salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Chocolate chips: The star ingredient, adding bursts of melty, rich chocolate throughout each bite.
This is just a short review of the ingredients; for the complete recipe, including quantities, scroll down to the recipe card 👇
How to Make The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
Achieving the perfect chocolate chip cookies is all about using the right techniques. Here are some essential tips to make sure your cookies turn out soft, chewy, and delicious every time:
- Use room temperature ingredients: Softened butter and room temperature eggs mix more evenly, giving you a smoother dough and a more consistent texture.
- Chill the dough: Refrigerating the cookie dough for at least 30 minutes before baking helps control the spread and enhances the flavors, resulting in thicker, chewy cookies.
- Don’t overmix: Once you add the flour, mix just until combined. Overmixing can cause the cookies to become dense and tough.
- Measure accurately: Use a kitchen scale for precise measurements, especially for flour and sugars, to achieve the best cookie texture.
- Use quality chocolate chips: High-quality chocolate makes all the difference. Choose semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips for a rich, flavorful experience.
- Underbake slightly: Take the cookies out of the oven when the edges are golden but the centers are still soft. They’ll continue to cook on the baking sheet as they cool, keeping the inside chewy.
- Add a pinch of salt on top: For extra flavor contrast, sprinkle a tiny pinch of sea salt over the cookies before baking to balance the sweetness and enhance the chocolate flavor.
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you wonder what makes chocolate chip cookies chewy, it all comes down to the right balance of ingredients and techniques. The combination of brown sugar and butter plays a big role here. Brown sugar contains molasses, which adds moisture and gives the cookies their soft, chewy texture. Using more brown sugar than white sugar also helps create that chewiness. The egg adds moisture and binds everything together, while refrigerating the dough before baking helps control the spread, making the cookies thicker and chewier. Finally, baking just until the edges are golden ensures the center stays soft and tender. These key steps and ingredients come together to create the perfect chewy chocolate chip cookies that everyone loves.
Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
Now that you know how to make chewy chocolate chip cookies, it’s time to move to the second part: soft chocolate chip cookies. I’ll make it easy and explain the secret to achieving that irresistible softness. The key lies in using the right amount of butter and sugar. By creaming softened butter with sugar, you incorporate air into the dough, making the cookies light and soft. Additionally, using a higher ratio of brown sugar helps retain moisture, which keeps the cookies soft even after baking. Another trick is to slightly underbake the cookies, so they stay tender in the center. Finally, refrigerating the dough before baking helps control the spread, allowing the cookies to stay thicker and softer. These tips will ensure you get perfectly soft cookies every time!
How to Store Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Cool completely: Allow the cookies to cool at room temperature before storing.
- Airtight container: Store the cookies in an airtight container to maintain freshness and prevent drying out.
- Store in the fridge: If you prefer to store cookies in the fridge, they can last for up to one week. Make sure to use an airtight container to prevent them from becoming stale.
- Freeze for long-term storage: Place cookies in a freezer-safe bag or container, and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Thawing and reheating: When ready to enjoy, thaw cookies at room temperature or microwave for a few seconds to warm them up.
Chocolate Chip Cookies Without Brown Sugar
If you’re out of brown sugar, you can replace it with white sugar. Keep in mind that the cookies will be a bit crisper, but they’ll still be delicious! To maintain some moisture, you can add a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup to the dough.
Common Questions
Making gluten-free chocolate chip cookies is quite easy! Here’s my recipe: gluten-free chocolate chip cookies.
To make vegan chocolate chip cookies, substitute the butter with a plant-based alternative like coconut oil or vegan butter, and use flaxseed mixed with water (1 tablespoon flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water) as an egg replacement. Make sure to use dairy-free chocolate chips for a completely vegan version.
If you’re out of brown sugar, you can replace it with white sugar. The cookies may be a bit crispier, but still tasty! To maintain moisture, add a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup to the dough.
Nestle Toll House cookies are famous for their classic texture—crispy on the edges and soft in the center. The secret lies in using a mix of both brown and white sugar, along with high-quality chocolate chips. Chilling the dough before baking also helps enhance the flavor and texture.
Chilling the dough for at least 30 minutes before baking is key to preventing the cookies from spreading too much. This helps them maintain their shape and results in thicker, chewier cookies.
For extra chewy cookies, use more brown sugar than white sugar. Brown sugar adds moisture and gives the cookies their chewy texture. Baking just until the edges are golden, while leaving the center soft, also helps achieve that chewiness.
Yes! Chocolate chip cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. Scoop the dough into balls and place them on a baking sheet to freeze. Once frozen, transfer the dough balls to a freezer-safe bag or container. Bake straight from frozen, adding an extra minute or two to the baking time.
More Cookie Recipes
If you enjoyed my soft and chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe and want to try something new, you’ll probably love:
- Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Healthy Oatmeal Cookies – 5 Easy Recipes
- Meringue Cookies
- Thumbprint Cookies
- Lemon Cookies
Or simply check out all my cookie recipes and choose your favorite.
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup (100 g) Brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup (50 g) White sugar
- ½ cup (115 g) Unsalted butter softened
- 1 large Egg
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
- 1½ cups (190 g) All-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon Baking soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup (160) Chocolate chips or less if you prefer
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar. Beat until creamy, about 2 minutes.
- Add egg, vanilla extract and beat until combined, scrape the bottom and sides as needed.
- In a separate bowl mix flour, baking soda and salt.
- Add flour mixture into the butter mixture. 1/2 at the time, mix until combined.
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- At this stage if dough is too soft, cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). line two baking trays with parchment paper.
- Scoop the dough onto a prepared baking sheet, leaving at least 3 inches (7.5 cm) of space between the cookies.
- Refrigerate for 30-40 minutes. *Read recipe notes
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until slightly golden around the edges.
- Allow to cool before serving.
Video
Notes
- Watch the Video: For a better understanding of the recipe, I always recommend watching the video recipe, which includes a step-by-step guide to help you succeed.
- FAQs: Make sure you read the FAQs for this recipe which are located above the recipe box for additional tips and troubleshooting! For extra tips and variations read the article.
- Chill the dough: Refrigerating the dough for at least 30 minutes before shaping helps control the spread and enhances the flavor of the cookies.
- Chill the dough balls: After shaping the cookie dough into balls, chill them for 30-40 minutes before baking. This step ensures thicker, chewier cookies.
I chilled these for the recommended time but it causes them to not spread out while baking, leaving me with chocolate chip balls rather than cookies
Be sure oven is completely preheated.
I tried these, very easy. I chilled the mixture in the bowl for 40 minutes before forming into balls. They spread out fine and were extremely tasty and I got lots of compliments.
The amount of flour doesn’t make sense. 1 1/2 of what? Cups? 190 grams equals to 3/4 of a cup. Please clarify.
just use the youtube video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFJAuAWxuvI
its way better
It depend upon your cup size
There is so many measuring cups available in the market in different sizes that’s why they have mentioned the quantity in grams also so that u can put flour in your cookie in right amount. Hope no one will feel offensive.
1 1/2 Cups equals to 190 grams.
I didn’t chill them as I had no space in my fridge. Just rolled them into balls and baked. Turned out great! To answer Laura’s question, I used cups as I read it that way 🙂 will be saving the recipe, had perfect round cookies!!! wish i could post a pic here.
Best Cookies Ever!!👍♥️❤️
Je pensais que les biscuits étaient extrêmement bons. Pas le meilleur, mais bon. 🙂
Well, I’m only 12 and thought that for a young kid that the instructions were easy to follow, and if yo Lu don’t slack off and watch the cookies in the oven, you take them out a little bit early, like a minute, then they continue baking on the hot tray. Also if you flatten out the cookie dough before it goes into the oven, not to much, the it creates a better cookie. Overall, me and my dad had fun making it, and that’s all the counts.
Best cookies ever!
Came out perfectly, followed instructions to a tee and can’t fault. In regards to cup vs grams, I followed grams.
Came out salty.
Absolutely the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made from scratch! Me and my teenage addeda little sea salt to the top of our cookies! So yummy!!!!
Uhmm whats the equipment you use??
I really found this pretty easy and helpful.
Thanks for sharing
Made some for my first time baking, it was really easy and my parents and friends really liked them. It’s a very basic recipe and you can even modify it to improve it by just adding new things to the recipe. 10/10 would recommend for something quick and easy!
Great recipe loved your YouTube video. I only measured 1 cup of flower and then added a little bit at a time for the right creamy texture. Also after blending the butter sugar, I blended in the salt and baking soda at the same time I added the egg and vanilla. Turned out awesome. First time my butter was halfway melted. I’m chilling my second batch now with only softened butter I left out over night at 78 fahrenheit. Doing this took a tad bit less flour for the same texture. Looks good again so
After trying other recipes, i can promise you, these chocolate chip cookies are the best I’ve ever tried.
These cookies are delicious! I got multiple compliments and people asking me if I can make more. Even without some of the proper measurements, it still tastes great!
Best ever chocolate chip cookies. The only recipe I use for 2 years now.
thanks
No doubt, the best chocolate chip cookies on the internet.